A recently developed display panel includes an electrode made up of two thin metal sheets which are welded together before the panel is assembled. The metal sheets are held together on a suitable support fixture, and they are welded together at several locations.
In performing these operations, it is necessary to handle each of the metal sheets and mount them on the welding apparatus and then transport them from the welding apparatus to other processing stations. The metal sheets are thin and very flexible and difficult to handle, and no apparatus is presently known for holding such sheets, transporting them, and performing the required operations thereon safely and easily.
The present invention solves this problem by means of a fixture which includes vacuum means, by means of which the fixture can readily hold each metal sheet and transfer it to welding apparatus. The apparatus can also support the assembly of the two metal sheets after they have been welded together so that they can be transported to other work stations.